Sundance Film Acquisitions Galore

Buyers are out in full force at the Sundance Film Festival at the moment with distribution rights being sold left and right reports Risky Biz Blog. In just the last day, the following deals have been made:

The Bengali DetectiveFox Searchlight has acquired worldwide remake rights to Philip Cox’s Sundance documentary which follows the efforts of a ragtag crew of private detectives to fill the crime-solving gap of a Calcutta society rampant with murder and fraud and an unengaged police force. The group is lead Rajesh who juggles caring for his dying wife, investigating a scourge of unsolved homicides and counterfeiting schemes, and pursuing a passion for dance.

BuckSundance Selects has purchased North American rights to Cindy Meehl’s documentary competition film about real-life horse whisperer Buck Brannaman.

CircumstanceParticipant Media has picked up North American rights to Maryam Keshavarz’s “Circumstance”, the story of an Iranian teenager’s sexual rebellion amid present-day Iran’s youth culture. Participant plans to find a domestic distribution partner for the film.

The Devil’s DoubleThe Lee Tamahori-directed drama about a man (Dominic Cooper) recruited to be the body double for Saddam Hussein’s brutish son Uday in pre-Gulf War Iraq is said to be close to a deal within the next few hours with Relativity Media and Fox Searchlight expressing interest.

The FutureMiranda July’s new film is fielding a multitude of interest from buyers as of Monday night with IFC Films, Oscilloscope Laboratories and Roadside Attractions all putting in bids while Fox Searchlight and Sony Pictures Classics have expressed fondness.

KnuckleHBO has almost finished locking down a remake rights deal that would turn this documentary about Irish bare-knuckle brawlers into a television drama for the network.

Life in a DayNational Geographic Films has picked up U.S. distribution rights to the global feature experiment. The non-profit will release the film theatrically day-and-date along with YouTube on July 24th – exactly a year after the film’s footage was shot around the world.

Martha Marcy May MarleneFox Searchlight has nabbed worldwide rights to Sean Durkin’s dark drama, paying between $1.5 and $2 million for the film which it plans to release this year.

Page OneMagnolia Pictures and Participant Media have partnered to purchase U.S. rights to Andrew Rossi’s documentary “Page One: A Year Inside The New York Times” which takes a behind-the-scenes look at a year in the life of the venerable national newspaper. Magnolia will release the film theatrically this year.

Silent HouseLiddell Entertainment has picked up domestic and most worldwide rights to the horror film for a cool $3 million along with committing another $3 million to P&A. Liddell will then flip domestic rights to a U.S. distributor with Lionsgate currently the main interested partner.